By Cristian Salazar – Associated Press(Yahoo News)

NEW YORK – Musician Gil Scott-Heron, who helped lay the groundwork for rap by fusing minimalistic percussion, political expression and spoken-word poetry on songs such as “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” but saw his brilliance undermined by a years-long drug addiction, has died at age 62.

A friend, Doris C. Nolan, who answered the telephone listed for his Manhattan recording company, said he died Friday afternoon at St. Luke’s Hospital after becoming sick upon returning from a trip to Europe.

“We’re all sort of shattered,” she said. [Read More]